Activists, stakeholders and the floods victims have been attracted by the government’s loud silence amid the natural disaster that has claimed lives, left hundreds homeless and wreaked havoc in the transport sector.
The President William Ruto led administration has been accused of melting down when the crisis hit the country with claims of lacking sympathy and empathy to the victims being laid squarely on the administration as a result of disjointed approach towards the natural calamity that has so far claimed 169 lives, 102 injured, while at least 30,099 households have been displaced by the floods, per government figures released on Monday, affecting approximately 150,495 people.
The disjointed approach was witnessed in two incidents involving two cabinet Secretaries; Education and for Information Communication and the Digital Economy Ezekiel Machogu and Eliud Owalo respectively where the former postponed school opening in the 11th hour, throwing learners, parents and guardians into confusion.
Machogu issued a statement at around 1 am on Monday, saying that the government has pushed school opening dates for a week due to the ongoing heavy rains across the country.
The schools were set to open on Monday, April 29, but that has been postponed to Monday, May 6, due to flooding as a result of the rains but the decision to postpone the opening date was announced at a time when some students had already reported to their schools.
Machogu’s decision came at a time when his Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang had announced that the postponement of the reporting date would be done on a need-by-need basis saying some schools had been affected and others had not.
“I can assure all of us that as already directed by the President we are all prepared and looking forward to our children going to school next week on Monday 29. “As a ministry, we shall be part of the multi-agency team so that we adequately walk with our colleagues to ensure that children will be safe when we go back to school next week,” he said on Friday.
On his part, Owalo yesterday had arrived at the Serena Hotel in Nairobi for the 2023 Ajira digital program National study report when the President was in State House for the Cabinet meeting to discuss the deadly floods and was forced to leave the ceremony in a haste with the master of ceremony announcing to the attendees that the Cs had been summoned in State House leading to the cancellation of the launch to unknown date.
But even as the President retreated to State House yesterday, the political class, governance experts and Human Right activists feel the Kenya Kwanza administration is coming in handy a little too late as the damage is already done.
Prof Gitile Naituli, a governance expert wondered why the national government has not deployed the military, which has the much-needed specialized equipment to rescue the victims of flash floods and landslides and leaving the ignorant locals to ‘on their own’.
“In areas where the locals are risking their lives by making makeshift boats and using ropes to rescue fellow human beings who can be seen in videos standing on a stone In the middle of the river, it is the Kenya navy that should be using their specialized boats to rescue people, in places where victims are seen on rooftops trying to rescue the victims, it is the Kenya Air force and the Kenya police jets that should be airlifting the victims, the military should have been busy setting up safe areas for the victims,” noted Prof Naituli.
He said instead of threatening to punish people ‘who force their way through floods’ the government should be using taxpayers money to sponsor advertisements to sensitize ignorant Kenyans on the dangers of floods, dos and don’ts.
“You don’t threaten people, you educate them because in threatening them, they associate you with threat and punishment and not leaders with well-intended intentions. Good leaders are identified during crises but unfortunately, the only good person who has been identified as a good leader is comedian Eric Omondi,” noted Naituli.
On Monday Interior CS Kithure Kindiki, ina directive to County Security and Intelligence Committees, warned Kenyans who force their way through flooded bridges will be charged with attempted suicide and called for the deployment of enforcement teams to all areas prone to flooding.
The CS said the deployed officers must prevent motorists and pedestrians from making dangerous crossovers in these flooded places saying should they defy the directive; the enforcement officer must arrest and charge such persons with attempted suicide or attempted murder.
“Deploy enforcement teams at urban and rural road spots prone to storm water flooding and without bridges or where the water has breached the bridge to prevent motorists or pedestrians from dangerous crossovers and to arrest and prosecute offenders for attempted suicide and/or attempted murder as the facts of the case may be,” the Cs said.
This comes even as the Opposition led by Azimio leader Raila Odinga yesterday expressed sorrow over the government’s response to the crisis saying floods have exposed what he called Kenya’s failure to properly plan for weather and climate change-driven disasters and invest adequately in infrastructure and social welfare.
“The situation therefore calls for accountability and a reordering of our priorities as a country. The devastation has made clear that as a nation, we must confront the emergency of our failure to learn. The government has been talking big on climate change, yet when the menace comes in full force, we have been caught unprepared,” he said.
Odinga bewailed the government’s failure to establish advance contingency plans in preparation for the long rain season, despite the Meteorological Department predicting heavy rains and storms.
“Amidst national disasters like the Shakahola massacre that claimed over 500 lives, road accidents that claimed over 100 lives, the health crisis that has seen patients die, the Covid-19 like flu that is ravaging the country and now the floods, the President did not see any need to stop his globetrotting spree to condole with his people and this is why I dare say the government is a disaster by itself,” Kioni claimed.
He added ‘governments all over the world are elected to protect its people not only during external invasion but also when they are affected by the natural calamities as the one we are currently in,” said Kioni.
He said the government’s efforts should go beyond collecting bodies but acting first based on the scientific proof to avert the dangers such as relying on the information by the Kenya Meteorological Department to move people to safer grounds.
Safina party leader Jimmy Wanjigi claimed the President has abandoned Kenyans at the ‘hour of utmost need’ describing his conduct as ‘a don’t care attitude’.
“The Presidential indifference to the ernmous human suffering of the Kenyan people is appaling and horrifying. I don’t care, Ruto must unequivocally apologize to the people of Kenya,” Wanjigi said.
Nominated Senator Gloria Orwoba on her part maintained that before Kenyans demanded to know what the national government was doing, they needed to hold the county governments accountable for the provision of the disaster management funds.
“Public Finance Management Act states that 2 percent of the county allocations be set aside by each county for disaster management. The counties have received the monies as follows; Nairobi Sh846000000, Nakuru 342858289, Marsabit174925219, Narok Sh298000000, Muranga 214000000. These funds have been devolved to counties,” she said.